This Asian Orange Chicken inspired by Panda Express is so quick, easy and delicious! Skip take-out and make it at home, all you need is 30 minutes, from start to finish!
Hi Guys! I hope you had a great weekend! It’s back to school week here. Even though my son, Ethan is just going to be in Pre-K 4, that still means I’m going to have a set routine in the morning. So my break is practically over and I’m ready to get back to the grind. It also helps me in being more regular with blogging.
Chinese inspired dishes are amongst those that get me drooling just by looking at the food. There is something so appetizing about that glossy sheen of sauces coating the protein. Don’t ya agree?
When it comes to Indian Chinese dishes, some of my favorite chicken dishes are chilli chicken, szechuan chicken, sweet and sour chicken, dragon chicken, kung pao chicken to name a few. Amongst the American Chinese dishes, I love them all, be it General Tso Chicken, sesame chicken, Hunan chicken, teriyaki chicken, or cashew chicken, and this oriental orange chicken .
I prepared and photographed this orange chicken couple of days ago. If you are looking for some quick chicken dinner recipes that are easy, kid-friendly and yet packed with all that yum, then you should definitely include this healthier, sauteed orange chicken in your recipe repertoire.
Basically, you can make orange chicken with orange marmalade as well but today’s version is made with the oriental flavors of soy sauce, ginger, and garlic. Today’s post is all about the Chinese version . If you have feasted on Panda express orange chicken, you already know how delicious this stuff is! And you can easily make it at home with simple ingredients.
In case you haven’t tasted it yet and are wondering what does orange chicken taste like, you have to try it sooner, you will surely love it. Orange chicken is generally on the sweeter side, with a very prominent flavor of orange and other delicious umami flavors. It is mildly spiced, and the addition of orange zest further heightens that orange flavor.
If sweet food is not your thing, you cake make a spicy orange chicken at home instead. Increase the chilli flakes in this recipe, and also add a couple of broken dried red chillies or add some hot sauce like sriracha to the sauce mix. It’s that simple! It’s the best part about this DIY orange chicken, customize it to suit your needs 🙂
- WHAT IS ORANGE CHICKEN?
- HOW TO MAKE ORANGE CHICKEN?
- ORANGE CHICKEN SAUCE | HOW TO MAKE ORANGE CHICKEN SAUCE FROM SCRATCH?
- SIDE DISHES FOR ORANGE CHICKEN
- YOU MAY ALSO LIKE THESE INDO CHINESE INSPIRED RECIPES
- STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE ASIAN ORANGE CHICKEN
- HOW TO MAKE ORANGE CHICKEN?
- Orange Chicken Recipe | How To Make Orange Chicken
WHAT IS ORANGE CHICKEN?
Orange chicken is one of the most popular North American Chinese dishes. It consists of chunks of chicken coated with a batter, deep-fried, and dunked in a sweet and sticky orange flavored sauce.
HOW TO MAKE ORANGE CHICKEN?
To make orange chicken , you will need to coat the chopped chicken pieces with some cornstarch, refined flour, oil, vinegar, egg, salt, and pepper. I skip the flour and use rice flour instead, as I always have it in my pantry, and I love to use it for these dishes in the coating. It makes for a crispier end result.
I marinate the chicken with a little oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper for about 10 minutes. The vinegar tenderizes the chicken, so the fried chicken is really moist and succulent and not dry and rubbery.
Now there are 3 ways in which you can go about cooking these battered chicken pieces-
- Deep-fried , as it is conventionally done.
- Baked , a much healthier option. No stress of deep frying plus no wastage of all that oil. I’ve baked battered chicken in a similar South Indian based stir-fry, chicken 65 . Please have a look at that post for the procedure. The results are just as good as the deep-fried ones. The safe temperature for chicken is 165 degrees F, and it will take around 18-20 minutes. That is the only downside of baking as it takes longer. If you have time to spare, it’s worth it. You could also try baking in the air-fryer.
- Sauteed – You can shallow fry the chicken in a skillet like I’ve done today, which is quicker than baking. If you are not a fan of all that batter, then skip the cornstarch, flour, egg. Simply marinate the chicken with a little vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper. Cook the chicken and add it to the orange sauce. This skillet orange chicken is quick and has no compromise in taste.
ORANGE CHICKEN SAUCE | HOW TO MAKE ORANGE CHICKEN SAUCE FROM SCRATCH?
Once your chicken is all fried and ready, what remains is for it to be dunked in that sweet, orange sauce which will thicken on further cooking and form a nice, glossy, orange glaze on the chicken pieces. Hmmm!
For the Asian orange sauce , combine orange juice, orange zest, soy sauce, brown sugar, rice wine vinegar in a bowl. You could also include the minced ginger and garlic in the bowl. But I like to saute the ginger and garlic in the oil. A little cornstarch slurry is added to thicken the sauce, the fried chicken pieces are added and the dish is finished off with a drizzle of sesame oil and scallion greens along with some toasted sesame seeds if desired.
That is all that is required to make orange chicken sauce . To increase the chicken flavor, you could use a small bouillon cube or some chicken stock mixed with the cornflour. If you like more sauce, add more chicken stock or water.
And if you are not up to making your own homemade orange sauce, then make orange chicken using panda express sauce. The ready to use sauce bottle is easily available in most stores. Add it to the cooked chicken in the skillet, and warm until the sauce is heated through. Sprinkle some scallion greens for a fresh element.
You can easily make this orange sauce while the chicken is marinating. The whole dish comes under 30 minutes making this a quick orange chicken recipe . Have some rice going on alongside, and you have a delicious meal ready, that’s better than take-out.
SIDE DISHES FOR ORANGE CHICKEN
Besides rice, orange chicken pairs well with just about anything, be it quinoa, fried rice , noodles, lo mein or steamed veggies like broccoli, carrots, snap peas etc. Today I paired it with steamed white rice. You could also briefly stir fry the veggies to make a veggie and orange chicken stir-fry.
- Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Schezwan Potatoes
- Schezwan Noodles
- Chilli Garlic Noodles
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE ASIAN ORANGE CHICKEN
1.Transfer chicken pieces to a medium-sized bowl. Add oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Cover and set aside for 10 minutes. I’ve used chicken tenderloins, but you could also chicken breasts or chicken thighs for this recipe.
2.Meanwhile, make the orange sauce. In a bowl, add orange juice, orange zest, light soy sauce, brown sugar, and rice wine vinegar. Mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning, add salt if necessary, more soy sauce, brown sugar or rice wine vinegar if required.
3.After the chicken has marinated, add an egg, cornstarch/cornflour and rice flour/all purpose flour. Mix well.
4.Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the chicken in batches, about 2 minutes each side, or until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to a plate lined with absorbent paper.
5.Heat a tablespoon of oil over medium heat in a wok or in the same skillet. Add minced ginger, garlic, and red chilli flakes. Sauté just until the ginger and garlic are aromatic. Do not brown it.
6.Immediately add the sauce, mix everything. Cook until it begins to bubble.
7.Add the cornstarch slurry, mixing simultaneously to avoid any lumps from forming.
8.Once the sauce begins to look glossy, add the fried chicken pieces, stir well to coat all the chicken pieces with the orange sauce. Stir-fry until the sauce has further thickened and adhered to the chicken pieces well.
9.Finish off with a drizzle of sesame oil, chopped scallion greens, and some toasted sesame seeds. Enjoy!
NOTE
1.You may add the ginger, garlic, and red chilli flakes if using along with the other sauce ingredients. Then mix and transfer to a pan, cook until the sauce begins to bubble about 3 minutes. Then add the cornstarch slurry, once it thickens add the fried chicken pieces.
HOW TO MAKE ORANGE CHICKEN?
Orange Chicken Recipe | How To Make Orange Chicken
Ingredients1x2x3x
Measuring cup used, 1 Cup = 250 ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml
- 1 lbs chicken tenders / breasts / skinless thighs, cut into 1 inch cubes
For the orange chicken batter
- 1 tsp salt or to taste
- Pinch of black or white pepper powder
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 2 tbsp rice flour/all purpose flour
- 1/2 tbsp oil
- 1 tsp white vinegar
- 1 egg
For the orange sauce
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 2 to 3 tbsp packed brown sugar or white sugar/honey
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- zest of an orange, about 1 tsp
Other ingredients
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1/4 tsp chilli flakes
- 1/2 tbsp minced ginger
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp cornstarch mixed with 1/8 cup water/chicken stock
For garnishing
- Scallions greens, as required
- Toasted sesame seeds, as required
Instructions
- Transfer chicken pieces to a medium-sized bowl. Add oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Cover and set aside for 10 minutes. I’ve used chicken tenderloins, but you could also chicken breasts or chicken thighs for this recipe.
- Meanwhile, make the orange sauce. In a bowl, add orange juice, orange zest, light soy sauce, brown sugar, and rice wine vinegar. Mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning, add salt if necessary, more soy sauce, brown sugar or rice wine vinegar if required.
- After the chicken has marinated, add an egg, cornstarch/cornflour and rice flour/all purpose flour. Mix well.
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the chicken in batches, about 2 minutes each side, or until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to a plate lined with absorbent paper.
- Heat a tablespoon of oil over medium heat in a wok or in the same skillet. Add minced ginger, garlic, and red chilli flakes. Sauté just until the ginger and garlic are aromatic. Do not brown it.
- Immediately add the sauce, mix everything. Cook until it begins to bubble.
- Add the cornstarch slurry, mixing simultaneously to avoid any lumps from forming.
- Once the sauce begins to look glossy, add the fried chicken pieces, stir well to coat all the chicken pieces with the orange sauce. Stir-fry until the sauce has further thickened and adhered to the chicken pieces well.
- Finish off with a drizzle of sesame oil, chopped scallion greens, and some toasted sesame seeds. Enjoy!
Notes
I would love to hear from you, please feel free to share your feedback with photos and suggestions to me at aromaticessence77@gmail.com
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Regards,
Freda
Orange Chicken Recipe | How To Make Orange Chicken
Ingredients
Measuring cup used, 1 Cup = 250 ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml
- 1 lbs chicken tenders / breasts / skinless thighs, cut into 1 inch cubes
For the orange chicken batter
- 1 tsp salt or to taste
- Pinch of black or white pepper powder
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 2 tbsp rice flour/all purpose flour
- 1/2 tbsp oil
- 1 tsp white vinegar
- 1 egg
For the orange sauce
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 2 to 3 tbsp packed brown sugar or white sugar/honey
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- zest of an orange, about 1 tsp
Other ingredients
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1/4 tsp chilli flakes
- 1/2 tbsp minced ginger
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp cornstarch mixed with 1/8 cup water/chicken stock
For garnishing
- Scallions greens, as required
- Toasted sesame seeds, as required
Instructions
- Transfer chicken pieces to a medium-sized bowl. Add oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Cover and set aside for 10 minutes. I’ve used chicken tenderloins, but you could also chicken breasts or chicken thighs for this recipe.
- Meanwhile, make the orange sauce. In a bowl, add orange juice, orange zest, light soy sauce, brown sugar, and rice wine vinegar. Mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning, add salt if necessary, more soy sauce, brown sugar or rice wine vinegar if required.
- After the chicken has marinated, add an egg, cornstarch/cornflour and rice flour/all purpose flour. Mix well.
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the chicken in batches, about 2 minutes each side, or until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to a plate lined with absorbent paper.
- Heat a tablespoon of oil over medium heat in a wok or in the same skillet. Add minced ginger, garlic, and red chilli flakes. Sauté just until the ginger and garlic are aromatic. Do not brown it.
- Immediately add the sauce, mix everything. Cook until it begins to bubble.
- Add the cornstarch slurry, mixing simultaneously to avoid any lumps from forming.
- Once the sauce begins to look glossy, add the fried chicken pieces, stir well to coat all the chicken pieces with the orange sauce. Stir-fry until the sauce has further thickened and adhered to the chicken pieces well.
- Finish off with a drizzle of sesame oil, chopped scallion greens, and some toasted sesame seeds. Enjoy!
Notes
This eggless pumpkin bread is moist and delicious and a cinch to make. Here’s a step by step recipe for an eggless, easy pumpkin bread recipe from scratch.
We are in the last week of August, I just can’t believe how time has flown by! Fall is not far off and if that’s not obvious then the stores here will certainly remind you. And before you know it, it will be time for Christmas!
It’s that time of the year when pumpkin spice everything, starts making an appearance here in the US. We don’t really get to see Fall colors here in Louisiana, but at least the temperatures drop to a point where it is nice and pleasant.
I really don’t need a chance to bake anyway. For me, it is like a stress buster! So even though we are a few weeks away from Fall officially, I still went ahead and baked us this delicious and really easy pumpkin bread. Coz! Why not?? At least breakfast was sorted for a couple of days..haha 😀
Banana bread and zucchini bread are a regular in my house, and with the use of canned pumpkin, it is quite possible to enjoy pumpkin bread all year round too. Pumpkin lends itself really well not only in savory dishes like curries, soups, or sauces or beverages like Pumpkin spice latte, or smoothies but also in desserts like pumpkin rolls, pumpkin pudding, pumpkin fudge. Pumpkin pancakes for breakfast, anyone? 😀
- What is pumpkin bread?
- Ingredients needed
- What makes this eggless version of pumpkin loaf light and moist?
- How long to cook pumpkin bread?
- Optional add-ins
- Storage
- Can you freeze this bread?
- Don’t forget to check out these egg-free bakes
- How to make eggless pumpkin bread – Step by step instructions
- Pumpkin Bread Recipe (Eggless) | How To Make Pumpkin Bread
What is pumpkin bread?
A question as simple as this may sound silly, but trust me, if you had asked me this 5 years ago, I would have no definite answer. I’d just think it is a sort of sandwich bread flavored with pumpkin perhaps. Because in India, bread is just a yeasted bread. We don’t have things like quick breads, we either have tea cakes or loaf cakes. For instance, a biscuit is a cookie in India, wheres a biscuit here is leavened quick bread.
So anyway, I drifted from the question. For the uninitiated, pumpkin bread is a moist quick bread flavored with warm spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves. Quick bread uses chemical leavening agents like baking powder and soda instead of yeast. Biscuits, muffins, scones, etc are different types of quick breads.
Ingredients needed
To make this incredibly easy and moist pumpkin quick bread you will need;
- Dry ingredients: Flour, baking powder, and soda, pumpkin pie spice, along with salt.
- Wet ingredients: Pumpkin puree (not canned pumpkin pie filling), oil, sugar, vanilla extract, and buttermilk.
- Optional: Pumpkin seeds for the topping
This pumpkin bread recipe without eggs turned out to be really good. It’s not like I have anything against eggs in baking. I love eggs and do use them for day to day cooking or in baking. But when I tried this recipe for the first time, I didn’t regret skipping the eggs.
If you are a vegetarian or want to bake a loaf of pumpkin bread for someone who has egg allergies, you should definitely try this recipe.
What makes this eggless version of pumpkin loaf light and moist?
The secret of this really soft, tender, and moist pumpkin loaf lies in the use of oil and buttermilk. And the use of pumpkin puree itself can be attributed to the moistness of this bread. It is seriously the best pumpkin bread I’ve ever had!
How long to cook pumpkin bread?
Once you gather your dry and wet ingredients, mix both well. Transfer the batter into your loaf pan and bake. It takes around 55-60 minutes to bake, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Each oven is different, so keep an eye towards the end of baking time.
Optional add-ins
Nuts: Stir in about 1/2 cup of chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans.
Chocolate chips: Add about 3/4 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips.
Raisins: Mix in about 1/2 cup of raisins.
This simple pumpkin bread recipe is like a blank canvas, get creative, and add your own mix-ins! Just takes the bread to a whole new level.
That aroma of warm spices wafting as the bread was baking was absolutely divine! One of the many advantages of making fresh pumpkin bread at home! A little treat for your senses too 😀
This recipe is adapted from my easy banana bread recipe. I converted it into this eggless pumpkin bread and wow!! it turned out to be so light, soft, and fluffy. In fact, you can use this recipe to make muffins or cupcakes.
As always, I like to start off with an awesome base recipe which gives me the chance to modify it so that I can make it healthier. I’m not a fan of whole wheat cakes, but I guess white whole wheat flour would work in this recipe, and the oil can be substituted with applesauce for a healthier bread.
I haven’t tried it with these substitutions yet, but if you do, I’d be happy to know how it turned out!
Storage
This recipe yields a single loaf which will keep well for at least 4-5 days at room temperature or up to 1 week in the refrigerator.
I seriously doubt it will last that long but in case you end up with leftovers and are wondering what to do with it, you can make pumpkin bread pudding, or pumpkin bread french toast, or simply toast it and slather butter and enjoy.
Can you freeze this bread?
Yes, you can! Wrap the entire loaf with a cling film after it has cooled completely, place it a labeled freezer-safe bag and freeze up to three months.
You can also freeze individual slices wrapped with cling film, and aluminum foil for up to 3 months.
Thaw it at room temperature for a couple of hours or in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds, or until thawed.
Don’t forget to check out these egg-free bakes
- Moist banana bread
- Eggless mango loaf cake
- Date and walnut loaf (eggless)
- Eggless marble cake
How to make eggless pumpkin bread – Step by step instructions
Step 1: Prepare the loaf pan
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F / 180 degrees C, position a rack in the middle of the oven. Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with little oil and dust with flour to coat the pan, or you may use parchment paper. {My loaf pan dimensions- 25.5 cms x 11.5 cms (10 x 5 inches), height of 7 cms}.
Step 2: Dry ingredients
In a medium mixing bowl, sift all the dry ingredients (1.5 cups all-purpose flour, 1.5 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp baking soda, and 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice mix) twice, from a height. Add 1/2 tsp salt, whisk until well combined. Set aside.
Step 3: Wet ingredients
Combine 1 cup pumpkin puree, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1/3 cup oil, 1/2 cup buttermilk or milk, and 1 tsp vanilla extract in a medium-sized bowl, whisk until you have a homogeneous mixture.
Step 4: Mix wet and dry ingredients
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, fold gently just until combined and no more flour pockets are visible. Do not overmix the batter. A few tiny lumps are okay.
Step 5: Bake
Transfer the batter to the baking pan. Gently tap it on the counter 2-3 times to remove the air bubbles. Sprinkle 3 tbsp pumpkin seeds (optional) on top. Bake on the middle rack for 55-60 min or until the toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. If you feel the top is browning quickly and the bread is still uncooked, cover with a foil during the last 10-15 minutes of baking.
Step 6: Cool and slice
Transfer the bread to a cooling rack, let it cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Then, remove the bread from the pan, place it on the cooling rack, and allow it to cool completely before slicing.
Notes
- This amount of sugar was the right sweetness for us. If you like a less sweet pumpkin bread decrease the sugar to 3/4 cup.
- f you do not have pumpkin pie spice mix, use the following homemade spice mix- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice & 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves.
- For a vegan version, swap the buttermilk with your choice of plant-based milk.
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Pumpkin Bread Recipe (Eggless) | How To Make Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients1x2x3x
Dry ingredients
- 1 & 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, 214 grams
- 1 & 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice mix
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Wet ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar or caster sugar 210 grams
- 1 cup 100% pure pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling) 245 grams
- 1/3 cup flavorless oil 66 grams
- 1/2 cup buttermilk or milk or plant-based milk for a vegan version 125 ml
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Other ingredients
- Oil spray/oil and flour as needed to grease and dust the pan
- 3 tablespoons pumpkin seeds, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F / 180 degrees C, position a rack in the middle of the oven. Grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with little oil and dust with flour to coat the pan, or you may use parchment paper. {My loaf pan dimensions- 25.5 cms x 11.5 cms (10 x 5 inches), height of 7 cms}.
- In a medium mixing bowl, sift all the dry ingredients twice, from a height. Add salt, whisk until well combined. Set aside.
- Add all the other wet ingredients in a medium-sized bowl, whisk until you have a homogeneous mixture.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, fold gently just until combined and no more flour pockets are visible. Do not overmix the batter.
- Transfer the batter to the baking pan. Gently tap it on the counter 2-3 times to remove the air bubbles. Sprinkle pumpkin seeds on top. Bake on the middle rack for 55-60 min or until the toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. If you feel the top is browning quickly and the bread is still uncooked, cover with a foil during the last 10-15 minutes of baking.
- Transfer the bread to a cooling rack, let it cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Then, remove the bread from the pan, place it on the cooling rack, and allow it to cool completely before slicing.
Notes
- This amount of sugar was the right sweetness for us. If you like a less sweet pumpkin bread decrease the sugar to 3/4 cup.
- If you do not have pumpkin pie spice mix, use the following homemade spice mix- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice & 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves.
- For a vegan version, swap the buttermilk with your choice of plant-based milk.
- Measuring cup used, 1 Cup = 250 ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml
